Was music better 10 years ago than today?

[SpideyVille]

This is my first time in the music section, so I don't know if there's another thread like this, but for the past couple of days I've been in sort of a nostalgic mood and have been listening to songs online that were big hits when I was younger. 10 years ago I was only 12 and didn't really have much taste in music, but i had a brother and sister who were in their late teens and were always watching MTV and VH1, back when they only played videos, so I was familiar with what was popular at the time. And listening to them now, I can't help but feel like the songs and the music industry as a whole was much better then than it is today.

I don't know, I may be in the minority here, but I feel like music from all genres were much better, specifically from the range of 1999 to 2004. I guess the same can be said with every decade based on how much music changes, but does anyone else feel this way?

 

[Catman]

It depends on the genre. Rap was better. Rock was more or less better. But, I like pop music a lot more now.

 

[enterthemadness]

It depends on the genre. Rap was better. Rock was more or less better. But, I like pop music a lot more now.

I disagree with you on Pop. I was a big fan of pop/soft rock/top 40 music...now I mostly listen to various types of rock. Matchbox Twenty new CD better save the suck fest state of top 40 music.

 

[Catman]

10 years ago, pop mostly consisted of boy bands and pop princesses. Now we have Lady Gaga. That's an improvement.

 

[enterthemadness]

10 years ago, pop mostly consisted of boy bands and pop princesses. Now we have Lady Gaga. That's an improvement.

Yes, but Lady Gaga is a bat insane badly dressed diva hack.

 

[Catman]

That's better than a record company manufactured bubble gum artist.

 

[enterthemadness]

That's better than a record company manufactured bubble gum artist.

Is it wrong that Britney Spears came to mind? Then Christana Augerila?

 

[Hypestyle]

hip-hop was better 10 years ago.. also 20 years ago..

 

[The Batman]

Rap was better overall, It felt like Rock still had a mainstream presence, and pop probably has more substance now, but definetely has less original characters behind them. Right now, it seems like all the chicks are pretty much trying to be like gaga in some form or another, whereas even if britney and christina were bubblegum pop, there was a clear difference between them.

 

[Catman]

Right now, it seems like all the chicks are pretty much trying to be like gaga in some form or another, whereas even if britney and christina were bubblegum pop, there was a clear difference between them.

Katy Perry is the polar opposite of Gaga. She's the anti-Gaga. Ke$ha is going for the whole drunk ****ty blonde image which has nothing to do with Gaga. So, I don't where you're getting the Gaga rip-offs from. Are you talking about Nicki Minaj? She's more of a goofball than anything else.

 

[Mr.Webs]

Nostalgia glasses really help with matters like this. Catman maybe said it best. Every decade and year has it's amazing music and it's terrible music. You just have to find the good because the bad is what usually gets peddled. That's the way it's been since music was pretty much a profitable commodity.

 

[Max J Power]

As far as stuff I like goes:

-Rap was better 10 years ago, although many of the great rappers who debuted then are still doing well now.
-Mainstream rock pretty has much sucked since the early 2000s.
-Alternative is better now. Most of the best '90s bands are still going strong, and many great alternative bands have had their debuts/breakthroughs in the last decade.
-Punk/ska was better 10 years ago. There haven't been a lot of new punk bands in the last few years that really jumped out at me, and new ska releases are a rare commodity these days.
-I definitely prefer the electronica-influenced pop of today to the boy band/teen girl sounds of yesteryear.

So I've got 2 for 10 years ago, 2 for now, and 1 tie.

 

[Catman]

Country music is better now, I guess. Taylor Swift. Lady Antebellum.

 

[Dark Sentinel]

Country music is better now, I guess. Taylor Swift. Lady Antebellum.

Country music was never good. Period.

The only good thing about rap today is, in my opinion, Eminem. I've been listening to a lot of old school hiphop lately and it's just better in every respect. The flows are better, there was true artistry in an MC's delivery, and it was about real issues and real situations, there wasn't any need to flaunt what you had.

Rock has always been one of my favorites, but yeah it's kind of on a hiatus right now in terms of just an epic band that sells out concerts everywhere and there's something to their music.

Pop, ehh...

 

[Catman]

Johnny Cash may disagree.

 

[Mr.Webs]

And Merle Haggard. And Elvis Presley. And a slew of others.

 

[Catman]

Indeed.

 

[Ponyboy]

Country music was never good. Period.

In the voice of the Dude... "Well that's just like... your opinion, man..."

American country music has some real gems... Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, even Ronnie Milsap. I'm not a "country fan" but there are some great country artists that have written great songs. Don't judge the few based on your dislike for the many.

 

[LuiECuomo]

Country music is better now, I guess. Taylor Swift. Lady Antebellum.

Taylor Swift and Lady Antebellum are not country.

 

[Ponyboy]

Taylor Swift and Lady Antebellum are not country.

 

[redhawk23]

Katy Perry is the polar opposite of Gaga. She's the anti-Gaga. Ke$ha is going for the whole drunk ****ty blonde image which has nothing to do with Gaga. So, I don't where you're getting the Gaga rip-offs from. Are you talking about Nicki Minaj? She's more of a goofball than anything else.

I don't maybe its the fact that they both have videos featuring shooting things out of their t#ts.

 

[redhawk23]

I don't think music was better 10 years ago, as other have said, ten years ago there was still a large number of Boy Bands around.

While I thnk mainstream wise rock has lost a lot of footing, theres still huge amounts of good rock music out there, you just have to go looking for it a bit, the bands might not be selling out giant stadiums but they have smaller shows with a great vibe that I actually prefer.

 

[Mrs. Sawyer]

As far as stuff I like goes:

-Rap was better 10 years ago, although many of the great rappers who debuted then are still doing well now.
-Mainstream rock pretty has much sucked since the early 2000s.
-Alternative is better now. Most of the best '90s bands are still going strong, and many great alternative bands have had their debuts/breakthroughs in the last decade.
-Punk/ska was better 10 years ago. There haven't been a lot of new punk bands in the last few years that really jumped out at me, and new ska releases are a rare commodity these days.
-I definitely prefer the electronica-influenced pop of today to the boy band/teen girl sounds of yesteryear.

So I've got 2 for 10 years ago, 2 for now, and 1 tie.

Agreed with all. I should add that though, that Alternative and Indie bands are much better today. I really like Franz Ferdinand and Artic Monkeys.

Johnny Cash may disagree.

This.

 

[Catman]

I don't maybe its the fact that they both have videos featuring shooting things out of their t#ts.

Their music is radically different. And that's what we're discussing. Music. Not videos.

 

[SpideyVille]

Should the rising popularity of autotune in recent years be taken into consideration?